Say What???

Things sometimes start off well, and then unexpectedly take a turn for the worse. Yesterday was one of those days.

And then on top of it all, the little girl I mentor, N, was a pill! She came up with every single excuse not to read (I have to go to the bathroom/I dropped my orange and need to go get another one/I can't sit on this chair, etc). I was getting rather aggravated and told her I come in order to help her and the least she can do is try to pay attention.

That's when she told me that she would rather have a black tutor! For those of you who might not have realized, I'm as white as they come. The statement really took me by surprise and honestly hurt my feelings. I don't think I should be putting up with something like this.

I told the program coordinator about N's statement, and she had a chat with her and made her apologize to me. Not that the things improved in the reading department. I think we read 4 pages of a children's book during the entire 45 minute session.

Thank god for Ashley who took me out for ice cream afterwards and for Jenn who came over after work to cheer me up. I'm so lucky to have my friends!!!

Things Found On The Ground

Wednesday Ashley's mentee wasn't in school again, so for the third week in a row I had to go mentoring on my own. It's boring: I have no one to talk to. So instead, I take my camera and my MP3 Player for entertainment.

And that's how I took two of these photos: a spoon embedded in cement and a hair color sample :) I wonder what people thought when they saw me taking photos of the ground!?



In other news, N (my mentee) was amazing on Wednesday. She listened, was in a good mood, did not complain about having to read, in fact read an entire book by herself! She was like a different child. I'm crossing my fingers this behavior will magically continue from now on.

National Mentoring Month

For the last year I have been mentoring/tutoring N through Power Lunch program. Some weeks are better than others. Sometimes I find the entire experience frustrating, stressful and thankless. Other times, I am so happy when N is able to read a word, finish a paragraph or finish an entire book.

Today, N was in one of her better moods. That's why I was surprised when she was called into the office with the other students during our reading session. Then, one by one, the kids came out of the office hiding something behind their backs! We were very intrigued. That's when they gave their respective mentors a flower and a thank you note! Turns out January is a National Mentoring Month! What a nice treat.

So very proud!!

I think today was my best mentoring session with N ever! Not only did we finish reading an entire book, but N paid attention, was well behaved (for most of the hour) and was able to correctly pronounce most of the words.

I feel like a proud mom :)

Every time I go to N's elementary school for Power Lunch I appreciate that I'm capable of reading and writing. I seriously cannot imagine what it's like not to be able to read the street signs, or the names of the stores, or a simple article in a newspaper. I really hope that I am helping her!

I really want to encourage everyone to find a local program where you can help someone with reading: I think it will change both of your lives for the better!

Power Lunch Is Back!

Yesterday I had my fist Power Lunch of this year. I started mentoring for this program last year and was eager to return. I will be working with the same student, let's call her N.

First of all, I was happy that N finally remembered my name :) That's a good sign, right? The school also did a good job remodeling the library to make it more open and inviting for students and their mentors.

After filling out a bit of paperwork, N and I started reading our first book together. She is still having a really hard time concentrating on the words, and instead her eyes look everywhere, but the book.

We were reading a story about lost toys, and I was trying to ask her questions as we read to make sure she was following the story and could anticipate what was about to happen.

One of the words in the story was shelter. I asked N what that meant, and she said: "a place where you go to be safe." I told her she was correct, and added that's a place that keeps you safe from cold, rain, etc.

What N said next almost broke my heart: "it is also where homeless people go, and where you can be safe from alcohol, drugs and crack." This completely shocked me. I don't think I was aware of these issues when I was 8 years old. Was I sheltered, or was the world a better place?

Volunteering: Picking Food For Those in Need

I'm a Volunteer group coordinator for meetinDC, and today with 4 other meetin members and many other volunteers we gathered at USDA to gather cucumbers, pumpkins and butternut squash, which will be later donated to DC food kitchens and food banks.

It was a lot of work, but well worth it. And I was also able to take home a few pumpkins and butternut squashes (sp?).

A new dress

This evening, Wendy and I will be volunteering at the Kennedy Center for the Helping Children Soar benefit organized by Children's Law Center. This is the same event I volunteered at last year.

I really wanted to buy a new dress for this event. Monday I went to a few stores at the Union Station, but could not find anything. Then on the way home I stopped by at Ann Taylor Loft, and of course started with the sales racks. Seriously, I cannot remember the last time I bought something that wasn't on sale.

There I saw a really pretty dress (see the picture to the left), but unfortunately it wasn't on sale: someone mistakenly put it there. I decided to try it on, and really liked it!

What to do??? I bought it! I think in the end it is a good investment, and it makes me feel pretty. And who knows, if it goes on sale within two weeks, I can get my money back.

I'm Childless

Today was a special Thank you lunch for the mentors and mentees in the Everybody Wins DC! program. Sadly, N was not at school, once again. Instead, I adopted another little girl, whose mentor did not show up.

The program director instructed the mentees to hold the hands of their mentors and recite a little speech about how much they appreciated us and that we are heroes! It was very touching, even though I've never read to this particular child. At the end she told me thank you for stepping in for her mentor, and I thanked her for stepping in for N. We then had pizza and boxed juice and carrots and a chocolate cookie! Hopefully, N is in school next week: our last time reading together this year.

The children read 857 books! N and I contributed about 7 :)

In other news, I told Ashley that I thought one of the mentors was really cute, but was probably in his early twenties. She told me that he's most likely gay. I have no radar...or it's broken. Sigh.

Yes, I'm quite white...

Just came back from mentoring. N had a hard time paying attention to the Tooth Book we were reading, and instead we had the following conversation for a few minutes:

N: your blue bracelets are the same color as your blue earrings.
me: I know, I like to match.
N: your sweater is black and your watch is black. and your hair is black.
me: yep.
N: your shirt is white. and your feet are white.
me: yes, that's right.
N: your face is white.
N: your skin is white.
me: yes, I'm all white.

Okay, maybe it was slightly more humorous when it was actually taking place. We then returned to the task of reading and it was so rewarding when she was able to read "without" and "lose" and "them" without my help! It's all about little steps.

I'm really going to miss these Wednesday mentoring sessions once the school is out in a few weeks. Too bad they don't have a summer camp where the children can continue to read and build on their accomplishments.

P.S. another mini funny story. The book mentioned something being "in style." When I asked N what that meant, she said "being fabulous!"

Big Rewards

Last week was Spring Break, and there was no Everybody Wins mentoring. Instead, I went out to lunch with Ashley. It's strange, how after mentoring for only a month, I missed seeing N*, my mentee, and reading with her: it quickly became a wonderfully rewarding break in the middle of my week. Today we had our "reunion." N was really glad to see me, and we had quite a successful reading hour. I was so proud of her when she was able to finish reading a few sentences without my help.

I made her note-cards with some of the words she still has trouble reading, and really hope her parents will help her to memorize them. I can't imagine how difficult it must be not to be able to read! Think of all the things you'd be missing out.

*I am not sure if I'm supposed to keep her identity confidential

Who says I don't like animals?

This is me with Curious George at a Gala for Everybody Wins! DC, a program where I mentor a 2nd grade girl in reading.

Me a mentor!?

I've done quite a few volunteering "things," but lately most of them involved working behind the scenes and lacked the face-to-face interaction with the people I was helping.

Last month Sarah told me about Everybody Wins! DC and it's Power Lunch program where professionals go into local schools and read with or to a child. I signed up right away!

Today was my first day and I'll be working with and mentoring a 2nd grader. It's funny, but we have so much in common: we both have a brother and a sister, we were both born in March, both like sushi and traveling.

Today we read Aladdin and A little mermaid. I did most of the reading and made sure to ask her if she understands the meaning of certain words. When I was leaving, she ran over to me and gave me a hug! That was so sweet!

I hope this will be a great experience for both of us!

A Season of Giving

You know those 20 cupcakes I made? I brought some to work and the rest to my rueda group. After all my dancing friends had a few cupcakes, I still had eight left and really did not want to take them home***. So after practice I decided to give the leftover cupcakes to homeless people around U Streen and luckily DeM came along for protection :)

To my surprise, we only found one homeless person, and he was more than happy to take two cupcakes.

Then I just asked random people waiting for the bus if they wanted a cupcake. I was actually surprised that most everyone said "yes." I don't think I would have taken unpackaged food from a stranger (might I have some trust issues?). By the time we got on the Metro I had 2 cupcakes left. One of them I gave to a Metro employee and told him to be careful not to get arrested for eating inside the Metro. He thought it was funny and said he'd wait till he gets out of the station before eating the cupcake.

The last cupcake I gave to the desk lady in my apartment building.

It felt so nice to give away all that chocolate!!!

***because that would mean I'll eat them, and I really should not. And plus, I still have cookies left over from the cookie exchange.

Giving Back

Thanksgiving is about being thankful for what we have, spending time with people we care about and of course the food!

This Thanksgiving I'll be travelling to visit Anna in Des Moines, so that takes care of one of the things on the list. We'll be doing plenty of cooking and eating out, so that takes care of the food requirement.

Last night, together with more than a hundred people, I joined Washington DC Jewish Community Center for Everything But the Turkey event. I really enjoy cooking for others and it makes me thankful for everything that I have. We provided a hearty Thanksgiving Day meal for the 2,000 residents of the Community for Creative Non-Violence (C.C.N.V.) homeless shelter, the largest in the country. In addition to supplying food to C.C.N.V., DC Central Kitchen will distribute the remaining meals to local homeless shelters, transitional housing facilities and community kitchens in DC.

For anyone who might be reading this and lives in DC area, I would encourage you to check out Washington DCJCC's December 25 Community Service Day. The details should be posted soon on a variety of projects you can get involved in to help those in need.

Volunteering: benefits everyone!!!

Ever since my family immigrated to Seattle from Moscow, Russia, I have volunteered my time for various organizations and causes. In High School and College I tutored math and reading to students ranging in age from elementary school to college level. I was also a tutor for the Economics Department at the University of Washington.

When I moved to D.C. area, I wanted to find opportunities where I could help others through my skills and time. What I found is that most of the time, by volunteering my time, not only do I help those in need, but I also enrich my own life.

Volunteering helps you forget about the issues in your own life, while you are helping someone in need. It also gives you a great chance to meet new people, learn about new organizations, show off your skills and have fun!

Yes, have fun! All you need to do is choose organizations that are involved in the issues you care about or the organizations that require the skills you have. For example, I love cooking and anything that deals with food, thus I often volunteer at the Washington DC Jewish Community Center. Washington DCJCC has a program called Hunger Action: together with other volunteers I prepare meals for hundreds of homeless people. Other opportunities include gathering food at USDA (the Hebrew term for it is gleaning), volunteering at a food bank, etc. Please check the link above for more information.

You can also sign up with Idealist.org, and receive daily emails listing various volunteering opportunities in areas of your interest. That is exactly how I learned about Children's Law Center. Last week they held the 6th annual Helping Children Soar gala at the Kennedy Center and needed volunteers the day of the event to give directions, hand out programs, etc. After I provided directions for about an hour and a half, I had a chance to actually attend the event, enjoy free food and drink and, obviously, more importantly hear the inspirational speech of Kenya Douglas.

Another memorable volunteering opportunity was through Peace x Peace. I helped at their first ever New Voices at The Table event held at the Embassy of Kuwait! Not only did I have a chance to dress up, but when else would I have a chance to see the Embassy of Kuwait (which was absolutely beautiful), mingle with people who dedicate their lives to helping other women, and have a wonderful dinner (I know it sounds like it's all about the food)?

Another great thing about volunteering, is that often by volunteering your time, you get something in return. This is especially great for those of you who are short on money, but have free time and would like to attend cultural events. For example, by volunteering at the Washingon Jewish Film Festival, I received free movie tickets for each volunteering event I completed; the same applies to their literary programs! Also, last year I volunteered at the Metropolitan Cooking & Entertainment Show. In return for 3 hours of my time and "work," I received free entrance to the show, met Paula Deen's sons, and enjoyed samples availabe from various vendors. 2007 show is coming up!

Other volunteering highlights for me include painting murals at several elementary schools and being the day of event volunteer for Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure.

October is the official volunteering month: find some free time in your busy schedules and VOLUNTEER! I promise you will find it rewarding :)